Beth Campbell

Project engineer
Green Hammer Construction

Beth Campbell is described by co-workers as a tireless worker on behalf of fighting climate change, a phenomenon that is already widely impacting the construction industry.

Since 2016 Campbell has served on the Passive House Northwest board of directors, a nonprofit group that organizes conferences, tours and speakers dedicated to green housing and building practices.

Back in the field, she practices what she preaches. From 2005 through 2015, Campbell ran her own residential contracting firm, building energy-efficient, high-end homes. At the same time, she presented more than 20 workshops on green building for both students and professionals. These ran the gamut from segments at permaculture courses to building events at universities and workshops for the general public and kids.

Two years ago she joined the team at Birdseye Construction as a project manager and estimator, where she oversaw the company’s high-end homes and worked with designers and contractors to make them as green and efficient as possible.
Because of this – and much more – Campbell is one of the DJC’s 2018 nominees for a Women of Vision award.

At the same time, says Josh Salinger, owner of Birdseye Construction, Campbell has also developed into a fierce advocate of women in construction.

“Beth has proven to be a strong advocate of women in the building trades,” Salinger said. “Her simply showing up on construction worksites as a woman can be a great act of social empowerment for the building industry as a whole. She is helping normalize the concept of women in the trades by exposing a typically male-dominated workforce to lived-examples of equality and female leadership.”

Campbell joined Portland’s Green Hammer Construction earlier this year, where she is now a project engineer working on an array of green building projects. She agrees with Salinger’s assessment.

“I’m so stoked that DJC Oregon recognizes the crucial importance of encouraging and supporting the women who are shaping our built environment,” Campbell said. “We need more allies on this journey looking at intersectionality and how it impacts us all.”

As a carpenter-turned-project manager, she said she faces both subtle and overt sexism on the job site almost every day.
“I half-joke that just by showing up to work and expecting respect, I am doing social justice work,” she said. “One of my biggest missions is to create a welcoming and inclusive environment for those of us underrepresented in the field.”

Outside of the office, Campbell stays busy with her garden, hiking, camping, and playing with other people’s dogs and kids.